OP-ED; Finneran foe finds opponent with pals

Thomas M. KEANE, Jr.
847 words
6 September 2002
Boston Herald
All Editions
029
English
(Copyright 2002)

There is something disturbing about Matt Damon and Ben Affleck trying to woo voters on behalf of Marjorie Decker.

Decker, a Cambridge city councilor, is campaigning to oust incumbent state Rep. Paul Demakis (D-Boston) from his seat. She enlisted the two actors, both of whom attended high school with her, to help in her efforts. Affleck appears in her campaign literature. Damon has taped a phone message to voters. It turns out the Bourne Identity is a telemarketer.

Still, it's not Affleck and Damon's involvement in the campaign that's disturbing. They're just doing a favor for a friend, albeit with a bit of self-interest thrown in - they get to buff up their credentials as locals who made good but never forgot their roots. The real problem is that Decker is relying on some sort of illusory Hollywood star power in place of what amounts to a very insubstantial campaign.

Demakis is a liberal's liberal. In office for eight years, he has represented a district composed of Boston's silk stocking neighborhoods (Beacon Hill and Back Bay) as well as portions of Brookline and Cambridge. He came to the job as a community activist, and won his first election more by dint of his reputation in that realm than his politics, which are to the left of many in the district.

And since then Demakis has done little to change that political profile. He has been an ardent opponent of House Speaker Thomas Finneran, a member of a group of dissidents that has opposed Finneran at nearly every turn since he was first made speaker. At the same time, he's been effective in advocating for a number of issues, such as buffer zones around abortion clinics or alternative energy. Those successes have made him beloved by environmentalists, labor, women's groups, and gay and lesbian activists.

Yet, even many who disagreed with Demakis politically liked his earnest commitment to neighborhood issues. He showed up everywhere and took the lead in many quality-of-life battles.

Still, one would think, there might be an opening here for an opponent with more moderate politics. And with redistricting last year, Demakis lost some old neighborhoods, such as Kenmore Square, and gained some new ones, including Cambridgeport, a swath of land between Massachusetts Avenue and the Charles River, where he was less well known. The opportunity for a challenge seemed ripe.

Enter Marjorie Decker. Only 30, glib and energetic, Decker posed a marked contrast to the older and more dour Demakis. Combined with a record of civic involvement that seemed to match Demakis', she appeared well-positioned to take him on.

And early on, she seemed to. When she first began making the political rounds in the spring, Decker sold herself as a pragmatist. Demakis, she argued, was a rigid, ideological loner. He had isolated himself on Beacon Hill with his vociferous opposition to Finneran. She hinted she might support the speaker. She based her campaign around the theme of bridge-building: a literal reference to the river that divides Boston and Cambridge and a figurative one to the coalition-building she argued was necessary to turn good ideas into good policy.

One problem, though: It turned out the district can't stand Finneran. Even SOTTO VOCE comments that Decker might be friendlier to Finneran didn't play.

The solution? Decker remade herself. She began attacking Demakis not because he was anti-Finneran, but on the grounds that he wasn't anti-enough - a startling argument to make about a four-term state rep whose punishment for defying the speaker has been that he has yet to hold a leadership post, has a windowless office in the State House and has but one staffer.

Beyond that, Decker constructed a campaign that is trying to out- liberal a liberal. MCAS and charter schools? Demakis just got the endorsement of the Massachusetts Teachers Association for his opposition to both. Decker's response? She'd be even more anti- MCAS, even more anti-charter.

Affordable housing? Decker criticizes Demakis for voting to raze a failed low-income project in Lowell and replace it with mixed- income housing. She says it proves Demakis opposes affordable housing. Few buy the argument. Moreover, there is something bizarre about a development in Lowell becoming the centerpiece of a campaign in a district centered in Boston.

Indeed, Decker's underlying problem is that politically she really is much like Demakis. Decker is likable, ambitious and may very well make a good state rep. But ousting an incumbent requires a challenger to make a compelling argument for change - one that Decker has been unable to muster.

And so, with little else to say, Decker is reduced to relying on movie stars. It's nice to know Affleck and Damon turn their gaze homewards once in a while. But even Good Will Hunting won't be enough to send Demakis packing.

Tom Keane can be reached at tomkeane@tomkeane.com.

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